Ash: Odds are the Cardinals won't win Super Bowl XLVI

By Mark Asher/Arizona Sports Published: February 08, 2011 @ 8:13am

I received an email Monday from my friend who works for www.bodog.com that gave the odds on every team in the NFL and their chances of winning next year's Super Bowl in Indianapolis. Normally this email catches my eye as I like to see what the experts think a full year away from the next big game. The usual suspects are always at the top of the list. As expected the Green Bay Packers are the odds on favorites to win it again at 7-1. The Patriots were 8-1, Steelers 10-1, San Diego 12-1 and a bunch of teams in the teens like Indy, Baltimore, Jets and Atlanta. One team that wasn't in the teens, the twenties, thirties or even the fifties was your Arizona Cardinals.

In fact the Cardinals have only three teams behind them that have worse odds to win it all. Carolina, Buffalo and Seattle are all 85-1 odds or worse and I can't really argue with those odds (although didn't the Seahawks win the NFC West this year). The Cardinals come in at 75-1 odds to win Super Bowl XLVI. Really? I mean I don't have that much faith that this team has any shot at making a return trip to the promise land, but worse odds of doing so then the Cleveland Browns, Oakland Raiders and the Detroit Lions?

I have to admit it doesn't have me real pumped up about what lies ahead. The Cardinals used to always be at the bottom of this list, but that was then, that was the old Cards. This is the new Cards. You know, the ones who win and sellout and almost won the Super Bowl. They don't deserve to be a bottom feeder like the Browns do they? Thanks a lot Derek Anderson!

I will be in Vegas in March as I do every year and today I thought about what a $100 bet on the Cards to shock the world would pay out. I could be the Phil Mickelson of KTAR. I did have the Packers at the start of this year to win it all, so maybe I am the guy who could pull it off back to back style. The only thing I worry about is the look I might get when I tell the guy at the sports book "I'd like to place this Benjamin Franklin on the Cardinals to win it all!". He would probably give me a ticket with the St. Louis Cardinals winning the 2012 World Series.

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Wow, no love from Vegas. Well, before the "New Cards" went to the Superbowl, we were still at the bottom of the list. I could really care less what Vegas thinks. Let's do what we need to do and shock the world (and Vegas).

Surprised only that the Seahawks are ranked lower. They have a solid quarterback (at least for next year) and presumably are preparing to improve on their deficits.
The Cardinals have no quarterback and cannot seem to install a defensive scheme that is successful on a year to year basis. We've also suffered a terrible erosion of talent over the last year and what we have left is either getting older or contemplating moving to a team that can win championships. Lots of unanswered questions for this team, starting at QB

Since there is no clear cut winner in the NFC West it could be said that any team in this division automatically should have better odds to at least make the Superbowl than the cellar dwellars in the top heavy divisions, because unlike those teams. The Cardinals were not that far off from actually making the playoffs, which is the first step towards the Superbowl. I agree that they will probably not make it but their chances should be much higher than say, Browns, Bengals, Lions, Redskins, Bills, Panthers, even the Titans now.

So 75-1 doesnt shock me. I'm not hating on those odds either. We have talent in some spots but for the most part the talent isn't there or the talent is aging. The Cards just hired Horton. Hopefully he'll be able to turn this Defense around. Until then Arizona fan's have to accept that we suck, have sorry owners, and it will be a long time before we reach the super bowl!